Matthias' eyes snapped open to a suffocating darkness, thick and absolute. But… he wasn't choking. He wasn't gasping for air. He didn't need to.
There was no pain, no hunger, no heartbeat. Only a distant awareness humming under his skin, like a machine warming up. Then he noticed something even stranger:
He wasn't touching the ground.
He hovered—weightless. Limbs floating as if suspended in thick liquid, yet there was no resistance. Just… nothing. A vacuum without the silence. A stillness without peace.
Above him, a single red light flared.
01:11:59:59:56
01:11:59:59:55
A digital counter. A countdown.
Two years.
"What the hell…"
His voice barely left his throat. His muscles felt unused, yet strong—too strong. Thoughts rushed in, memories that weren't memories, instincts that didn't feel earned. Languages. Equations. Martial stances. Cybernetic schematics. It all poured into him at once—
And then he screamed.
The sound was strangled by the room, swallowed by the dark.
He clutched at his head. The influx of knowledge came like fire and ice at once, each skillset hitting like a hammer to his neurons. The wishes—the price—the Council—the soul—
The counter kept ticking.
01:11:59:59:41
01:11:59:59:40
"I said I wanted to be gone for two years. Not trapped, not—"
But before he could finish, before his body could catch up to his mind, everything stopped.
Not the timer.
Matthias.
His body went limp, pupils dilating. Consciousness dropped like a curtain, and the Architect fell back into slumber. However, as the Architect slipped into a slumber, the blueprint he laid out began its first stages of development.
Rhea, Gotham
I awoke sitting on the lush, leather furniture of the Crowe Estate. This was my home in the last world, was my home now, and would be my home forever. It was more than just the estate, it was the blood, sweat, and tears that went into building it. The absolute being that headed it. The man who my role would be to marry in this world.
'That's all for later though, for now I need to assemble the full Eleven. Directive from the Architect sets priority Alpha as acquiring Nova and Damian before any other member of the Eleven.' I thought in silence, as I stood and looked at myself across the extravagant room, into the full body mirror. The straight, flowing material resembled silk but was stronger than every metal on Earth…or at least what used to be Earth. I wore an all white business suit fitting female CEO standards.
'This reminds me, the first suborder in Priority Alpha is to test physical, magical, mental and spiritual parameters compared to their counterparts in the New World.' I thought as I took my first steps out of the room and into the hallway.
There I met the only other member of the Eleven who's origin in this version of the world would begin with them at the mansion. Sebastian. The butler. The concierge. The businessman.
"What's with the stoic face, Sebas?" I asked with a soft smirk as his eyes never met mine, always in my direction though. The gaze of a servant. Never level so that everyone knows he's below me, but never off of me so that I'm always taken care of. He was also my bodyguard.
"Please, Lady Crowe, stoicism has no place in the presence of a direct member of the Crowe family. I am merely in such awe of your greatness that I can not properly process my emotions." he said with a slight bow as he held the front door for me, heading out to the matte black Rolls-Royce Cullinan out front.
"Sigh, lighten up Sebas. You've been a member of this family for almost as long as me. You're like family. You even share a similar last name to us as proof. Sir Crow." I gestured with a wave of my hand hoping he'd lighten up, but alas, he just silently nodded and opened the door for me as I slid into the cloud-like seats of the fully modded sedan.
Sebastian took the backseat next to me, but the car started up as soon as the door closed. The engine purred like a beast held back on a leash. The black glass separator betraying no hint of any driver in the car. The mansion gates opened with silent grace, revealing the long driveway that led to the hidden roads behind Gotham.
Inside, I activated the retinal interface embedded in my left eye. A soft hum flickered in my vision, projecting two profiles into the air before me.
Nova: Age 17. Technomancer. Class: The Brain
Nova would be my first target, at the orphanage she was in right now. While being transported to this world, we were all separated by a being only known to Matthias. We were all placed in separate places around the world, with awakening to our old abilities and memories only happening upon return to the Crowe Estate. This was necessary for smooth and proper integration into the world through the use of artificially created, natural identities.
Damian: Age 16. Combat Virtuoso. Class: Strong Arm.
He'd be my second and final target for the time being.
The blueprint provided by the Architect wasn't just specific—it was absolute. Nova was to be the mind. Damian, the brawn. And I… I was the bridge between worlds. I was to bring everything together, and to execute the plan as The Mastermind. And execute I will, as always.
I tapped the black glass twice. The Cullinan began to glide forward on auto-pilot. Destination an old orphanage in Gotham. It was time to pick up Nova.
I looked down at a timer that had been running on my watch since I got here. The time had decreased from the initial 2 hours and now read "1:56:34".
"All according to plan." I said with a knowing smirk as the car continued to smoothly glide through the air in stealth mode above Gotham. I looked out the window in patience as I heard the familiar, crisp noise of a bottle of premium grade champagne opening next to me as Sebas poured me a drink.
"A drink for the trip, milady." he said in full stoicism, even though he heavily protested it.
I gracefully took the cup and swirled it before taking a sip of the fragrant drink. I immediately relaxed and let out a breath of calmed tension as I felt the bubbles jubilantly hopscotch across my taste buds.
"Thank you, Sebas."
I was met with a calm, clean nod of practiced and noble etiquette.
I continued looking back out the window as the Sun rose above the dark clouds clouding all vision of Gotham below. I couldn't help but sink further into my seat in comfort as the rays of sunlight began to illuminate the peanut butter leather interior of the automatic temperature regulating Cullinan.
'How nice to be a Crowe.'